Believer (#3) | ✓

19. sleep and never wake up

Adalena didn't know how to feel as she scanned the photographs over and over. She knew she was hungry — when was she not? And she was annoyed and worried, as she felt would be a normal emotion but she couldn't find it in herself to throw herself into this.

This is exactly what she was trying to avoid yet she damned herself by exposing her pregnancy in a slightly public place.

Or maybe this Dean guy is just a creep.

He watched them have sex. It doesn't get creepier than that.

"So what's he gonna do? Wait until I give birth to kill me?"

"He's not going to do anything, Lena." Adriano assures her but she's not having it.

"Except kill me and you."

Domenico sighs, "If he's going to do something, he's not going to wait nine months to do it."

"What, so he just wants us on edge, looking over our shoulders at every hour of everyday?" She turns to Adriano who's going through the photographs again, "Didn't you say stressing is something I'm not supposed to be doing?"

She wasn't expecting to be bombarded with naked pictures of herself when Antonio called her down to the debriefing room. Now, here she is.

Adriano glances up at her beautiful yet tense face and purses his lips, "I'm sorry, amore. Thought this would be something you'd like to know."

Adalena looks up at the ceiling, fighting the urge to cry. She knows he's right but that doesn't help the fact that she's insanely emotional and now stressing over the fact that this guy who wants her head and her boyf— best friend's head on a pike now knows that she's pregnant.

As she blinks continuously, she waves her hand toward Angel who was staring at her with concern clear in his gaze. "Angel, can you take a shot of strawberry rum for me?"

"I hate strawberry —"

"Take a shot!" She exclaims, now bouncing her leg to calm herself down. Angel's mouth forms an O but he complies, calling Antonio to get him the bottle.

Domenico chuckles at the interaction. He remembers when Farrah's mood swings would leave him on the brunt end of the stick.

Adriano sighs as he looks at the mother of his child, "You want to go for a walk?"

Her eyes remain on the titanium ceiling, "I want to go to sleep and never wake up."

Luca releases an amused chuckle at her dramatics and crosses his tattooed arms over his chest, "That got deep."

A moment passes as Adalena finally casts her glance down, her eyes no longer blurry with unshed tears, "What's our plan?"

"Our plan is to find him and kill him." Adriano says, eyeing her carefully, "Your plan is to stay here and rest."

Adalena couldn't even find it within herself to argue. Actually, yes she can. But she holds off long enough to ask another question, "Day in and day out? Am I allowed to leave here? Go back to Vegas? What about my mom? Would he go after her? What about Henry? Is he safe? How long is this even going to go on for?" Okay, more than one question.

Adriano is sure enough to answer all of them, "We don't know where he is yet but he knows where we are, so staying here where you're protected would be most advisable. No, you can't go back to Vegas. We'll put some men on your mother and Henry. We don't know how long this is going to go on for, but we'll be looking for him every step of the way."

Adalena huffs, "How can a random man be invisible to one of the most powerful group of people in the world?"

Silence lingers in the room, people unsure of the answer because they have that question too.

Then Luca, ever so intellectual, speaks, "He's powerful too."

Adriano leans forward, stare dripping poison as he focuses on the photograph of Kory on the table. "Let's see how powerful he is when he's dead."

• • •

               Adalena decided to actually take people's advice and rest. She's barely showing yet she can't stop rubbing her belly as she lays on her back on the bed she'll be sharing with Adriano.

"I know you're barely even a peanut but I just want you to know that your dad and I love you so much and we can't wait for you to get here."

She feels her heart swell at the thought of her child in her arms, small hand wrapped around her finger, rocking them to sleep. Despite everything going on, even her diagnosis, in the heat of it all, she feels blessed.

Not just with her miracle pregnancy but with the man she chose to be the father of her child. She's stubborn, she knows that — but at some point, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that she loves him.

Speak and he shall appear — Adriano enters the room, unbuttoning his cuff links along with the expensive shirt he wears. After closing out the meeting with his brothers, he was itching to see Lena and hold her. And now, here she is, watching him carefully with her hands on her belly.

He looks at her and sends her an adoring smile, "Ciao amore mio."

"Ciao." She greets, her voice soft with the revelation of her feelings running amuck.

And of course, his dick twitches. He pulls his shirt off and looks away for two seconds, giving Adalena enough time to scan his entire body, especially the tent forming in his pants.

"Are you always horny?" She decides to playfully tease to which he chuckles lightheartedly.

"For you, yes." He responds. Adalena rolls her eyes and says nothing else as he removes his pants and enters the attached en suite bathroom to take a quick shower to wash off the flight. He doesn't close the door completely, leaving a space for him to call out, "You want me to set you a bath?"

Adalena is too busy using that space for something else other than communication. She watches as he removes his boxers and throws them in a hamper, his plump ass now greeting her in the most respectful way. Her eyes trail over his sculpted back and the many tattoos marked into his skin.

The ridges that line his back leave Adalena in a controlled frenzy, biting her bottom lip and unblinking.

"Lena?" He calls, head now sticking out from behind the door. She finally meets his eyes, "Bath?"

She nods and releases an approving hum as he smiles at her and disappears behind the door to set the bath for her.

🫶🏾🫶🏾🫶🏾